several questions on how to get a hen broody

Ok I want some baby chicks next spring ...how long does it take for the eggs to hatch? I got 4 silky babies now will they b able to go broody by spring? Can I take all the other chickens eggs and put them in the same spot to make them go broody faster if so how many per chicken?... my nesting box lowest spots are about a foot off the floor will the baby chicks get hurt getting out if so Wat do I do?

Though having silkies greatly increases your chances of having a broody, there's nothing you can do to make a hen go broody. Sure lots of folks claim to have sure fire tips but I've tried them all, they don't work.

Quote:Good luck! I spent three years begging, pleading and bribing my brahma girls - a supposedly broody breed - to go broody. Finally broke down and ordered two silkies. And then, my SF was the first to go broody. One of my silkies does and quite regularly I might add, but the other silkie never has.

It is totally up to the hen's biological make-up. Hormonal and genetics, from her mother, and her mother's mother.... You can neither make a hen broody nor can you speed up the egg-laying process. They lay when they are ready and those that do go broody don't even have to have eggs under them at the time, much less know if the eggs are fertilized or not. Some hens brood on air (no eggs under them) and some go broody on golf balls or other eggs-similles.